Method of manufacturing a slider having a carbon overcoat and an electrically conductive adhesive layer

ABSTRACT

A slider of the type for use with a rotatable magnetic disk is disclosed. The slider has two ends and a bottom surface which includes an air bearing surface. An adhesive layer and continuous coating of carbon is located on the air bearing surface. A method of sputter depositing this continuous layer of carbon upon the air bearing surface of the slider is also provided. The continuous layer of carbon is crown-shaped and deposited using the sputtering technique. The carbon is directed from a source at the air bearing surface of a slider. A mask is placed between the source and slider so that the carbon is deposited in a crown shape. When the slider is viewed from front to rear the maximum depth of the coating is less than about 6 to 10 nm, while at the ends of the slider the coating depth is near 0 nm. The resistivity of the protective carbon layer is controlled for the additional benefit of protection from damages by electrostatic discharge.

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No.08/286,935, filed Aug. 8, 1994, U.S. Pat. No. 5,654,850, which was acontinuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/063,282,filed May 18, 1993 now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 5,336,550.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to air bearing sliders which support amagnetic read/write head and which are used in conjunction with arotating magnetic disk in a magnetic recording disk drive. Morespecifically, the present invention relates to a method of sputterdepositing an adhesion layer and a crown-shaped continuous carboncoating upon the air bearing surface of a slider to reduce the frictionbetween the slider and disk, so as to improve the durability of theslider and disk. The resistivity of the protective carbon layer iscontrolled for the additional benefit of protection from damages byelectrostatic discharge.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Rotating magnetic disks of the type found in disk drives utilize amagnetic recording head to read and write the information upon the disk.Typically, the magnetic recording disk is made from a substrate ofaluminum having a thin film metal alloy, or other media which acts asthe magnetic layer, deposited thereon. A protective layer of carbon isnormally then deposited upon this magnetic layer. The carbon layer isused to protect the magnetic layer from wear and corrosion.

The magnetic recording head which is used to read and write theinformation upon the disk is supported upon a slider. The slider is inturn mounted upon a support arm. The slider itself is typically made offerrite or a ceramic material such as alumina-titanium carbide orcalcium titanate.

When not in use, the slider rests upon the surface of the magnetic disk.During information retrieval and recording, however, the magnetic diskis rotated. When the disk first begins rotating, the slider slides alongthe surface of the magnetic disk. As the rotational speed of the diskincreases, however, a boundary layer of air is formed which causes theslider to lift off of the disk and "fly" above the surface of the disk.The distance of the slider from the disk during flight is approximately50 nm. When the power to the disk drive is once again shut off, the diskrotational speed gradually decreases, and the slider lands upon thedisk, sliding along the surface of the disk until the disk comes torest.

Several problems arise from the contact of the slider with the disk.First, during start up and slow down of the disk, the slider is slidingdirectly in contact with the disk surface. This frictional contactcauses wear of the disk and slider. The wear of the disk occurs, eventhough a protective carbon coating is applied to the disk, because ofthe extreme hardness of the slider material. The excessive wear on thedisk reduces the effective useful life of the disk.

Contact between the slider and disk also occurs occasionally when thedisk is at full rotational speed. Although the boundary layer of airnormally acts to support the slider above the disk, high points(asperities) on the otherwise smooth surface of the disk often cause theslider to make contact with these projections on the disk. When theslider impacts these asperities on the disk, the slider often gouges thedisk surface, further degrading the disk surface, as well as causingdamage to the head and slider.

Several additional problems, other than wear of the disk and slider,have been identified with the use of prior art sliders. First, duringinitial rotational start up of the disk, friction between the slider anddisk increases the force necessary to rotate the disk. This necessitatesthe use of large motors to turn the disks. Second, the magnetic poles ofthe head, made of an alloy of nickel and iron, which are exposed to theatmosphere are sometimes prone to corrosion. This is especially true inthe case of magnetoresistive (MR) heads, where the MR sensor isparticularly prone to corrosion. The carbon overcoat serves to protectthe sensor from exposure to the environment. The corrosion of themagnetic poles and the magnetoresistive sensor interferes with theability of the transducer to properly read and write the information onthe disk.

Recently, one attempt was made to resolve some of the above identifiedproblems. U.S. Pat. No. 5,151,294 discloses a method for forming aprotective film of carbon upon the air bearing surface of a slider. Thispatent discloses a method of frictional carbon transfer wherein some ofthe protective carbon on a disk is transferred to a slider by startingand stopping the rotation of a disk so that the slider remains incontact with the disk during rotation. As a result of the frictionalinterference between the disk and slider during the many start/stopcycles, carbon from the overcoat on the disk is transferred to theslider surface.

This prior art method suffers from several disadvantages andincompletely solves the problems described above. First, when the carbonis transferred from the disk to the slider, the placement of the carbonon the slider is random. The random placement occurs because as thecarbon transfer takes place, the carbon first begins adhering to theslider in raised spots (as on a microscopic level the slider is notabsolutely flat) and in areas of high friction. Once the carbon beginsto adhere to the slider in these areas, the remaining portion of theslider surface is then separated from the disk by the thickness of thetransferred carbon. This means that carbon is deposited in certain areasof the slider, but not others. Utilizing this prior art method, the airbearing surface of the slider does not become completely covered,exposing the non-covered areas of the slider to corrosive agents.Further, the frictional method of carbon placement does not allow thecarbon to be placed in specific thicknesses, nor in specific regions onthe slider, as the placement of the carbon is purely random.

Other references, U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,508 to Grill, et al., and U.S.Pat. No. 5,175,658 to Chang, et al., describe the use of a DC biasedsubstrate in an RF plasma deposition apparatus to deposit an adhesionlayer and a thin layer of carbon upon the air bearing surface of aslider. These references describe depositing an adhesion layer to athickness of between 10 and 50 angstroms (i.e., 1 to 5 nm), and a carbonlayer to a thickness of 50-1000 angstroms (i.e., 5 to 100 nm) upon theflat surface of a slider. An etching technique is then used to form apatterned area, which includes rails, on the air bearing surface. Asolvent is then used to remove the photoresist layer which is used tocontrol the etching.

This prior art method suffers from several disadvantages as well.Primarily, the Grill and Chang references disclose a method by which theprotective coating (plus a masking layer as described in the Changreference), is placed to protect the slider. These layers are necessaryto protect the slider during subsequent etching which is done to formthe patterned air bearing surface, and from subsequent solvent removalof the photoresist layer after etching.

Unfortunately, this method requires, for practical purposes, theplacement of a substantial thickness of coating across the entire sliderin order that the sensor not be damaged during the etching process.Further, this method does not allow control over the depth of thecoating material across the air bearing surface of the slider. Inparticular, during the etching and solvent removal steps, which are doneto form the patterned surface in the slider and remove a photoresistmaterial, the coating is removed in an uncontrolled fashion. This causesthe coating thickness to vary across the air bearing surface of theslider.

Prior to this time, it has also been found extremely difficult todeposit a carbon coating utilizing a sputter technique to a thickness ofless than or equal to 20-25 nm with any consistency. The difficultyarises from the fact that when the carbon is so thin, it is not acontinuous film, and therefore adheres poorly to the base or substratematerial. Very thick carbon films are unacceptable in the context of usewith sliders because the placement of any coating upon the air-bearingsurface of the slider further separates (remembering that during"flight" the slider is separated from the disk by an air space of asmuch as 50 nm) the head from the disk during read/write operations. Theadded separation of 25 nm caused by the addition of the carbon coatingby the prior art methods is unacceptable as such a large separationinterferes with the ability of the read/write head to operateeffectively.

It is noted that the shape of the air bearing surface is important forit determines, at least in part, the flight characteristics of theslider. Prior to this time, the shape imparted upon the air bearingsurface of the slider has been made by lapping the surface of theslider. This is a time and labor-consuming method, and is not veryexact. In fact, current lapping techniques have a tolerance of only ±0.6micro inches (i.e., about 15 nm).

The prior art methods of coating placement do not allow selectiveplacement and control over the shape of the coating material. Therefore,any shape imposed upon the air bearing surface of the slider must bedone with the lapping technique before the thickness of coating is addedwith the prior art methods.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to overcome the above stated problems and limitations, there isprovided a slider for use with a rotating magnetic disk, the sliderhaving an air bearing surface with a continuous coating of carbonthereon.

Preferably, the coating has a maximum thickness of between 6 and 10 nm.Further, in order to minimize take-off time and interference of thecoating with the electrical and magnetic functions of the slider, thecoating is crown shaped (i.e., being dome shaped, with a maximumthickness in the center and tapering to a very small thickness at eachend) when viewed from end to end. In this form, the coating on the airbearing surface has a thickness of nearly 0 nm at ends of the slider,and a maximum thickness of 6-10 nm midway between the ends of theslider.

The continuous carbon coating substantially reduces the friction betweenthe slider and disk, and reduces wear of the same. The reduced frictionalso reduces the torque requirement of the motor which is used to rotatethe disk. Lastly, the continuous carbon coating protects the magneticpoletips and, the magnetoresistive sensor from corrosion.

In accordance with the present invention, there is also provided amethod for forming a protective coating upon the air bearing surface ofa slider. In the preferred method, a continuous coating of carboncomprises the protective layer. The carbon is preferably depositedutilizing a slow sputter deposition process in which carbon is directedfrom a sputtering source toward the air bearing surface of a slider.Utilizing this method, a continuous coating of carbon desirably having amaximum thickness of between about 6 and 10 nm can be deposited upon theair bearing surface of the slider.

To deposit the carbon in the preferred crown shape upon the slider, amasking technique is utilized. In this method, a mask is placed betweenthe sputtering source and the air bearing surface of the slider. Themask comprises a slot in a metal frame. The slot is dimensioned suchthat its width is slightly greater than the width of the slider, but theslot length is less than the length of the slider. The mask thus appearsas a frame which is placed between the sputtering source and the slider.

During the sputtering process, the use of the mask causes the majorityof the carbon to land on the surface of the slider in an areacorresponding to the hole in the mask. Because the sputtering source,the mask, and the slider are all spaced from one another, some of thecarbon which leaves the source at an angle passes through the hole ofthe mask, and is deposited on the slider beyond the perimeter an areadirectly aligned with and equal in size to the hole in the mask. Themajority of the carbon leaves the source and moves in a direct line tothe slider. Lastly, some of the carbon, whether travelling in a directline or at an angle hits the mask and is prevented from being depositedon the slider. In this fashion, a crown shaped carbon coating is formedon the air bearing surface of the slider, with the majority of thecarbon located in the center of the slider and very little carbonlocated towards the ends of the slider.

In accordance with the present invention, there is also provided amethod of depositing an adhesion layer upon the air bearing surface ofthe slider before the protective carbon coating is deposited. Thismethod preferably comprises sputtering a continuous adhesion layer uponthe air bearing surface of the slider desirably to a maximum uniformdepth of less than about 3 nm.

These and other aspects of the invention will become apparent from astudy of the following description in which reference is directed to thefollowing drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a slider of the present invention asused in conjunction with a rotating magnetic disc.

FIG. 2 is an end view of the slider of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the slider of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a graph illustrating the coefficient of friction between adisk and prior art slider plotted against start/stop cycles.

FIG. 5 is a graph illustrating the coefficient of friction between adisk and a slider of the present invention plotted against start/stopcycles.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a slider of the present invention with theaddition of an adhesion layer.

FIG. 7 is a side view of the sputtering process illustrating asputtering source, slider, and a mask.

FIG. 8 is an end view of the sputtering process of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a top view of a mask overlying the air bearing surface of aslider during sputtering of a coating upon a slider.

FIG. 10 is a side view of the sputtering process of FIG. 7, when acoating is applied to a slider having a taper at one end.

FIG. 11 is a side view of an alternate embodiment coated slider of thepresent invention.

FIG. 12 is a side view of a slider of the present invention,illustrating the accumulation and bleed off of electrostatic charge.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 illustrates a monolithic slider 20 (although it is to beunderstood that the present invention is equally applicable to thin-filmor composite sliders) of the present invention. As illustrated, theslider 20 is primarily rectangular, and has a top surface 22, as well asa bottom surface 24. The bottom surface 24 has a front edge 25 and arear edge 27. As can best be seen in FIG. 2, the bottom surface 24 issomewhat E-shaped, having two outer rails having planar bottom surfaceswhich comprise the air bearing surface 29 of the slider 20. The bottomsurfaces of the rails are called the air bearing surface 29, as thepressure profile of the air against the slider 20 is such that when theslider 20 is "flying," these surfaces are essentially what supports theslider 20 on its cushion of air. The bottom surface 24 also has a centerhead area 31, and a recessed area 60 between said center head 31 andouter rails. Referring again to FIG. 1, the slider 20 also has a frontend 26 and a rear end 28. A transducer 30 is located on the rear end 28of the slider 20, and is connected to the center head area 31 as is wellknown in the art. The slider 20 is supported by and connected to an arm32 by two flexible leads 33.

FIG. 3 illustrates the slider 20 as it rides on a cushion of air above arotating magnetic disk 34. The shape of the slider 20, thecharacteristics of the boundary layer air flow, and the manner in whichthe slider 20 is connected to the arm 32 causes the slider 20 to have apitch to it during "flight." In FIG. 3, this pitch, which is a tiltingof the slider 20 from the front 26 downward to the back 28 from ahorizontal plane, is exaggerated for clarity. The pitch of the slider 20during flight is such that the rear end 28 of the slider 20 is closer tothe disk 34 than the front end 26.

As discussed above, the durability of the slider and disk are greatlyreduced due to friction between the slider and disk during start up ofthe disk. This frictional resistance also necessitates the use of alarge motor to rotate the disk. Further, disk life is reduced because ofcontact between the slider and disk when the slider is not maintained in"flight" and contacts the disk and there is no protective surface. Inorder to reduce the friction between the air bearing surface 29 and thedisk 34, a coating 36 of friction reducing material is placed on thebottom 24 of the slider 20, including the air bearing surface 29. In thepreferred embodiment, the material which comprises the coating 36 iscarbon. The material comprising the coating 36 may be, however, anymaterial which exhibits strong adhesion to the slider 20, and which actsto reduce the friction between the disk 34 and slider 20.

FIG. 3 illustrates the importance of keeping the coating 36 as thin aspossible, while at the same time, having a thickness which is sufficientto protect the disk 34 and slider 20. As described above, when the disk34 begins to rotate, the slider 20, which is originally at rest on thesurface of the disk 34, becomes airborne, above a certain diskrotational speed. Once airborne, the slider 20 stabilizes at a distancefrom the surface of the disk 34. At this time the air bearing surface 29of the slider 20 and the disk 34 are separated by a spacing 38. Becauseof the pitch of the slider 20, this spacing 38 varies over the length ofthe air bearing surface 29. Thus, when the slider has a flat air bearingsurface and coating thereon, the spacing is a minimum at the rear end ofthe slider. Likewise, the spacing is a maximum at the front end of theslider.

Importantly, the illustrated slider 20 and its connection to the arm 32are designed such that the spacing 38 at the rear end of the entireslider 20 is minimized in order that the head can effectively read andwrite information on the disk 34. At the same time, this spacing 38 isnot eliminated, for as the spacing 38 approaches zero, the weardurability of the slider 20 and disk 34 are reduced because of severalfactors. First, disk 34 topography varies, necessitating some spacing38. Second, the air bearing modifications made to the slider 20 in orderthat it will fly low generally increase the time the slider 20 remainson the disk 34 before take-off. Finally, a small spacing 38 results inthe slider 20 more frequently contacting asperities in the disk 34.

Importantly, to reduce the wear on the slider 20 and disk 34, thecoating 36 is added to the bottom 24 of the slider 20, including the airbearing surface 29, thus limiting the wear problems which occur betweenthe slider 20 and disk 34, especially when the spacing 38 is madeoptimally small. At the same time, however, the addition of a coating 36increases the spacing 38, thus affecting the electrical and magneticcharacteristics of the slider 20. Therefore, it is important that thecoating 36 be as thin as possible, while at the same time thick enoughto provide the wear resistance function which is required. It has beenfound through experimentation that a carbon coating 36 having a maximumthickness of 6 to 10 nm provides this function, and yet is not so thickthat it increases the spacing 38 to a point at which the function of theslider 20 is impaired. The thickness of coating 36 which is necessarywill vary depending upon the material used for the coating.

FIGS. 2 and 3 best illustrate the slider 20 of the preferred embodiment,in which a coating 36 is located on the bottom 24 of the slider 20,including the air bearing surface 29. FIG. 2 illustrates the coatedslider 20 as viewed from the rear end 28 of the slider 20.

FIG. 3 illustrates the preferred embodiment of the slider 20 of thepresent invention as viewed from one side. As stated above, in order toprotect the slider 20 and disk 34, it has been determined that a coating36 having a maximum thickness of 6 to 10 nm is preferable. FIG. 3illustrates the preferred embodiment of the invention in which thecoating 36 is placed in a crown shape. It is possible to coat the airbearing surface 29 of the slider 20 with a coating 36 in a layer ofuniform thickness. A coating 36 having a uniform thickness of between 6and 10 nm is also viable, as the continuous coating protects the slider20 from corrosion, and reduces wear between the disk 34 and slider 20.

While it is advantageous over the prior art to place a coating 36 havinga uniform thickness of 6 to 10 nm uniformly across the bottom 24 of theslider 20, including the air bearing surface 29, as stated above, thisis not the preferred coating 36 shape. The presence of a 6 to 10 nmthickness coating 36 at the rear edge 27 of the slider 20 where thetransducer 30 is located can reduce the magnetic and electric propertiesof the head. As illustrated in conjunction with FIG. 3, any appreciablethickness of coating 36 at the rear edge 27 of the slider 20 means thatthe spacing 38 is large. A large spacing 38 is unacceptable as itinterferes with the function of the slider 20.

Advantageously, therefore, and as best illustrated in FIG. 3, thecoating 36 which is located on the air bearing surface 29 is thicker inthe middle, between the ends 26, 28, and is thinner towards the rear end28, and desirably both ends 26, 28. Preferably, the coating 36 has acrown shape (i.e. arcuate when viewed from end to end, with the thickestor highest point in the middle, and the thinnest or lowest at the ends,and where the thickness does not vary from side to side), wherein thecoating is very thin at the front and rear edges 25 and 27 of the bottom24, including the air bearing surface 29, and where the coating is muchthicker in an area between the two ends 26 and 28. A coating 36 havingthis shape is preferred because the coating 36 acts to protect theslider 20 and disk 34 from damage. At the same time, because there isvery little coating 36 at the rear end 28, the magnetic poles (not shownin detail) do not ride as high above the disk 34 as would occur if thecoating 36 were uniformly thick. In this manner, the thin coating 36 atthe rear end 28 allows the coating 36 to properly protect the airbearing surface 29, and yet at the same time, the spacing 38 between themagnetic poles and disk 34 is not increased to a point at which thefunction of the slider 20 is impaired.

Further, it has been determined that the crown shape of the coating 36as viewed from the front edge 25 of the air bearing surface 29 towardsthe top of the crown, provides beneficial flight characteristics. Thecrown shape aids in providing lift to the slider 20, thus reducing theamount of time the slider 20 spends in contact with the disk 34 when thedisk 34 begins to rotate. Thus, in the preferred embodiment, the coating36 has a thickness of 6 to 10 nm towards the middle of the slider 20,trailing to near 0 nm at the front and rear edges 25 and 27 at the frontand rear ends 26, 28 of the slider 20.

It is to be understood that while a coating 36 having a crown shape ispreferred, there are many other coating shapes which are beneficial, asall such coatings provide friction and wear reducing characteristics.For example, it is possible to place the coating 36 such that most ofthe coating is located at the four corners of the air bearing surface 29of the slider 20 (See FIG. 11). While such a coating 36 shape does notprovide enhanced flight characteristics, the coating does provide wearreducing qualities while not interfering with the magnetic/electricalcharacteristics of the slider 20.

The ability to deposit the coating 36 in a crown shape (or other shape)represents a substantial improvement over the prior art. As describedearlier, lapping techniques are currently used to adjust the shape ofthe air bearing surface of the slider. These lapping techniques arequite inaccurate, having tolerances of ±0.6 micro inches (i.e., about 15nm) at best. The current invention provides for a slider 20 in which thecoating 36 is placed on the slider 20 in a crown shape. Formation of thecrown in this manner is especially advantageous since it eliminates theneed for costly contour lapping of the slider. Further, the crown of thepresent invention can be placed with an accuracy of ±0.1 micro inch(i.e., 2.5 nm), enabling very precise control over the shape of the airbearing surface 29 of the slider 20, and thus the flight characteristicsof the slider 20.

FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate the beneficial effect of the coating 36 ofcarbon on the air bearing surface 29 of a slider 20 over a standardnon-coated slider. In order to calculate the frictional coefficientbetween a slider 20 and disk 34, a strain gauge was connected to themount on the head. The disk 34 was rotated from a stopped position to amaximum velocity, which was maintained for a specific set time period,and then the disk 34 was brought to rest. This start/stop cycle wasrepeated and the maximum friction coefficient during each start/stopcycle was recorded as a function of the number of cycles.

FIG. 4 illustrates the maximum friction coefficient per start/stop cyclefor a standard non-coated slider. FIG. 5 illustrates the same frictioncoefficient per start/stop cycle for a slider 20 of the presentinvention, having a coating 36 of uniform thickness thereon. As can beseen, utilizing a slider 20 of the present invention with a protectivecoating, the coefficient of friction is reduced by as much as 40%. Inaddition, the friction coefficient for a coated slider is very uniformover a large number of cycles, unlike that of the standard uncoatedslider, which exhibits large fluctuations in friction coefficient. Inthis case, this is more important than the 40% increase in the averagefriction coefficient, because the motor torque required corresponds tothat needed to overcome the maximum friction, which in this case isalmost 2.5 times that for the carbon overcoated slider.

Besides reducing wear on the disk 34 by reducing friction duringstop/start of the disk 34, the coating 36 has several other beneficialeffects. First, reduction of friction during stop/start of the disk 34not only reduces wear, but reduces the amount of force needed to rotatethe disk 34. Therefore, a motor which consumes less power than mightotherwise be possible may be used. This is important in applicationssuch as portable computers where power consumption needs to beminimized.

Wear on the disk 34 caused when the slider 20 drops from its "flying"position to contact the surface of the disk 34 is also reduced. Visualinspection of the air bearing surface 29 of the slider 20, as well asthe disk 34, after the friction tests were conducted showed that thecoating 36 on the slider 20 of the present invention reduced the wear onthese surfaces. Lastly, because the coating 36 which is placed on theair bearing surface 29 is continuous, the coating 36 protects themagnetic poles and the magnetoresistive sensor from corrosion.

While FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate the beneficial effects of a slider 20 ofthe present invention over a standard non-coated slider, the slider 20of the present invention has benefits over the prior art sliders whichhave coatings which are applied by frictional means. First, as discussedabove, the continuous coating 36 of the present invention protects themagnetic poles and the magnetoresistive sensor from corrosion, as thecoating 36 protects the entire bottom surface 24 of the slider 20,including the magnetic poles and the magnetoresistive sensor. The priorart coating which is applied through frictional means does notadequately protect the slider from corrosion, as some areas of the airbearing surface are not covered. Further, such prior art frictionallyapplied coatings (and those in which the coating is uncontrollablyetched away during later etching processes) do not allow selectiveplacement of the coating material. In the present invention, the coating36 is preferably crown shaped to enhance flight characteristics,minimize spacing, and maximize protection of the magnetic poles and themagnetoresistive sensor.

While it has been found that carbon exhibits strong adhesion to theslider 20 surfaces, it is preferable to have a layer of adhesivematerial 39, as illustrated in FIG. 6, located on the slider 20 underthe coating 36. This layer of adhesive may also be desirable when acoating 36 material is used which does not have the adhesive propertiesof carbon. When used with carbon, it has been found preferable to firstuniformly coat the air bearing surface 29 of the slider 20 with anadhesion layer to a uniform depth of about 2-4 nm, and preferably lessthan 3 nm. The carbon coating 36 is then located on this layer ofadhesive, with the total thickness of both layers being approximately6-10 nm. The same shape variations of the coating 36 may, of course, beused after the adhesion layer 39 is placed.

Typical disc drive operation involving "take-off", "flight" and"landing" of slider 20 will encounter static and dynamic frictionalforces between the air bearing and disc surfaces. It is also well knownthat contact and friction between insulating materials often producescharge exchange and accumulation, usually leading to electrostaticdischarge (ESD). Even a dry air boundary layer during slider 20 flightmay be sufficient to induce charge accumulation on slider 20 surfaces.Hence, during manufacturing, handling, and disk drive operation,electrostatic accumulation and discharge near the sensitive headtransducer element 30 is a common failure mechanism of considerableconcern.

As depicted in FIG. 12, slider body 50 is typically made from aconducting material such as Al₂ O₃ --TiC. The magnetic transducerelement 30 is isolated from slider body 50 by an insulating undercoat52, such as an alumina (Al₂ O₃) layer about 8 μm thick. Duringoperation, insulating surfaces in the vicinity of head transducerelement 30, such as bottom surface 24 and rear end 28 as well as disksurface coating 56 may develop and accumulate electrostatic charge as aresult of their close proximity, relative motion, and mutual contactpotential. Indeed, very large electrostatic fields, exceeding thedielectric breakdown of the local insulators (including the air boundarylayer), may develop between the MR stripe and the conductive magneticshields on two sides of the stripe and insulated from it within the headtransducer element 30, and in the vicinity of head transducer element 30and nearby conductors, such as slider body 50 or a conducting disclayer. Ensuing ESD causes considerable damage to head transducer 30 aswell as surrounding insulating regions 52, 56.

In addition to the aforementioned dynamic and tribological advantagesoffered by the preferred slider coating 36, ESD is substantially reducedwhen coating 36 is also electrically conducting and maintained at aconstant electrostatic potential. Referring again to FIG. 12, slidercoating 36 can be maintained at substantially ground potential throughcontact with a conducting slider body 50 maintained at ground potentialor some other equipotential contact. Thus, electrostatic chargeaccumulation 54 near transducer element 30 may effectively dissipate viaconduction through slider coating 36. In this respect, the centralconsideration in preventing ESD is to provide for charge dissipation inregions adjacent to transducer element 30. It is now recognized that apreferred slider coating 36 is therefore conducting as well as frictionreducing. Furthermore, for thorough charge dissipation, layer 39preferably covers substantially all of the insulating undercoat 52, aswell as the interfacial regions bounding transducer element 30 and bondpads 58.

Unfortunately, friction reducing materials will not often form asufficiently strong bond with the slider body or the insulatingundercoat to withstand the shear forces exerted on them duringoperation. Specifically, the slider coating 36 should desirably besecured to the slider in a manner which will enable it to overcomeoperating shear forces of about 50 g distributed over a slider rail areaof 0.6 mm². For this reason, it will often be necessary to utilize anadhesive layer 39 between the slider coating 36, and the slider body andinsulating undercoat 52 surrounding the transducer 30. The adhesivelayer will create a stronger bond with both the slider coating 36 andthe slider body. Further, desirably the adhesive layer will form astrong enough bond with both elements to overcome operating shear forcesof about 50 g over the slider area of 0.6 mm².

While materials such as pure silicon have exceptional adhesivecharacteristics, it is essentially non-conductive and, therefore, canprevent the dissipation of electronic charge. Other materials, such aschromium, provide both sufficient adhesive characteristics to overcomethe applicable shear stress and sufficient conductivity to reduce thelevel of ESD. On the other hand, as discussed below, it has beendetermined that it is desirable for the adhesive layer to have aresistance higher than the resistance component of the characteristicimpedance of the transducer element. Chromium, unfortunately has ahigher conductivity than the resistance component of the characteristicimpedance of typical transducer elements. Rarely, will a singleinexpensive and easy to work with material provide the desired adhesivecharacteristics while at the same time have conductivity characteristicswithin the desired parameters. Therefore, an important aspect of theinvention is the provision of a composite adhesive layer and a methodfor "tuning" the adhesive layer to provide the desired adhesive andelectrical characteristics.

A transducer element 30, such as an MR element, often requires biascurrents for operation which should not be significantly influenced bycontact with an adhesive conductive coating. It is now recognized that apreferred slider coating 36, adhesive layer 39 or a combination thereofshould have a resistance higher than the resistance component of thecharacteristic impedance of transducer element 30, yet low enough toallow dissipative currents at least substantially equivalent to theelectrostatic charge generation rate. Typically, an MR element will havea resistance component of impedance of 20-50Ω, in which case theadhesive layer 39 desirably has a resistance in the range of 10⁴ -10⁶ Ω,so as to be non-invasive and yet effective for charge dissipation.

The preferred embodiments herein disclosed allow for the selectiveadjustment of dissipative conduction in coatings 36 and 39 withoutsignificantly influencing transducer element 30. In essence, thecomposition and thickness of materials comprising layers 36 and 39 maybe adjusted or "tuned" to provide a desired film conductivity, withincertain limits established by head operation. For example, slidercoating 36 is preferably comprised of a carbon film, which generallydisplays a semi-metallic conductivity. While such a film is clearlysufficient to dissipate electrostatic charge accumulation, adhesivelayer 39 will, in general, influence charge flow from carbon layer 36 toslider body 50, as depicted by the wavy arrows embedded in layer 39.Selective adjustment of adhesive layer 39 will therefore control thedegree of electrostatic charge dissipation. In particular, layer 39 maycomprise a thin film of silicon for adhesion, which displays a very lowconductivity at room temperature, particularly in the form of asputter-deposited film. The low conductivity of a pure silicon adhesionlayer 39 prevents charge transfer between coating 36 and slider body 50,thereby hindering dissipation of accumulated charge 54. However, ifcarbon is codeposited during the silicon deposition stage, thenconductivity of layer 39 increases roughly with the carbon:siliconratio, while still maintaining a total adhesive layer 39 thickness ofabout 2-4 nm and preferably less than 3 nm. The codeposition of carbonwith silicon may be accomplished in a variety of ways, preferablysputter deposited, either simultaneously with different deposition ratesor in alternating layers with different layer thickness. Alternatinglayer deposition may for example produce an adhesive layer 39 comprisedof 2-10 alternating layers of silicon and carbon, with respective layerthickness substantially given by the desired carbon:silicon ratio. Forcomponent layer thickness of approximately the average sputter grainsize or less, intralayer granularity and non-contiguous film depositionrenders a substantially random distribution of carbon and silicon. Underthese conditions, the composite is substantially equivalent to that of asimultaneous deposition procedure. Moreover, it is believed that theconductivity will be determined substantially by the spatially averagedcarbon:silicon ratio. A presently contemplated preferred carbon:siliconcodeposited layer comprises alternating layers of silicon and carbon,wherein the carbon:silicon ratio lies within an approximate range of 0.3to 1, with total thickness preferably less than 3 nm.

Accordingly, in a preferred slider coating, adhesion layer 39 serves adual purpose, and the choice of materials for adhesion layer 39 isimportant. The carbon:silicon layer 39 herein disclosed is a preferredexample of an adhesive layer which also provides electrostatic dischargeprotection.

Referring now to FIGS. 6-8, an important aspect of the invention is theimproved method by which the coating 36 described above is placed uponthe bottom 24 of the slider 20, including the air bearing surface 29.When depositing the preferred coating material 36, carbon, sputterdeposition is preferred. In order to achieve a continuous carbon coatinghaving a close tolerance thickness of between 6 and 10 nm, theparameters of the sputtering process are crucial. Preferably, as statedabove, carbon is the preferred coating 36 material, and is depositedutilizing a sputtering process. First, the bottom 24 of the slider 20,including the air bearing surface 29, is etched to clean the surface ofthe slider 20. Similarly, a sputtering source 42 or "target" issimilarly etched to clean it.

Next, the friction reducing material, carbon here, is deposited on theslider 20. In order to deposit the carbon on the bottom 24 of the slider20, including the air bearing surface 29, to a thickness of less thanabout 10 nm, the deposition process must be controlled with accuracy.Preferably, the following parameters are used during the bias-sputteringprocess when utilizing an RF diode sputtering system, preferably aPerkin-Elmer II.

Process atmospheric gas: Argon;

Gas pressure: under 8-10 milliTorr;

Power: under 400 Watts; and

Substrate voltage: -20 to -100 Volts.

Utilizing these parameters, in order to achieve a coating 36 having amaximum thickness of between 6 and 10 nm, a sputtering time of 20 to 45minutes is used. (This sputtering rate is over two hundred times slowerthan that used in previous sputtering methods involving disks, when usedto place a coating of a similar thickness.) It is noted that it ispreferable to utilize this system in a manner whereby several slidersare involved in the sputter deposition process, the sliders located on arotating substrate table, as is well known in the art. It is possible tosputter deposit material on the sliders in a static system, however.

In order to control the placement of the coating material onto the airbearing surface 29 of the slider 20, a mask 40 is used. The mask 40 ispreferably made of metal, which is then coated with carbon to eliminateredeposition problems during etching. Metal is the preferred mask 40material, because of cleanliness, heating, outgassing and othercompatibility reasons. For the same reasons that metal is the preferredmaterial, the mask 40 should not be made of paper, plastic, or glass.The mask 40 acts to deflect some of the sputtered carbon 46, whileallowing some of the carbon 48 to be deposited in certain areas of theslider 20.

FIGS. 7-9 illustrate the use of a mask 40 to create the preferred crownshaped coating 36 upon the air bearing surface 29. As illustrated inFIG. 7, the slider 20 is placed with its air bearing surface 29 facingtoward the sputter source 42. As illustrated, the sputter source or"target" 42 is disc shaped. The mask 40 is placed in between the slider20 and a sputter source 42, a distance of about 0.6 mm beingadvantageous. In the typical sputtering system, the distance between thesource 42 and the slider 20 is typically 1 to 3 inches. It is noted thatin a system in which several sliders are located on a rotating substratetable, the mask 40 is located so that each slider moves under the maskduring the deposition of the sputtered material.

As illustrated in FIG. 9, the mask 40 has a central opening 44 therein.The length "l" of the opening 44 is less than the length of the slider20. In this fashion, as carbon is sputtered towards the mask 40, themajority of the carbon travels in a direct line to the slider 20 and isdeposited in an area aligned with and corresponding in size to theopening 44 in the mask 40. Some of the carbon (see lines labelled 48 inFIG. 7), however, travels at an angle from the source 42 to the slider20, meaning that some of the carbon passes through the hole 44 in themask 40 and lands on the slider 20 in an area outside the perimeter ofthe area corresponding to the area defined by the hole 44 in the mask40. Any carbon (see lines labelled 46 in FIG. 7), whether travelling atan angle or in a straight line, which hits the mask 40 is prevented frombeing deposited on the slider 20. It is noted that, as illustrated inuse with a flat slider 20 to form a crown-shaped coating 36, the mask 40is centered over the slider 20. If, however, as illustrated in FIG. 10,one end of the slider 20 is tapered, the mask 40 is moved away from thatend by an amount equal to the tapered length, so that the crown isformed on the remaining flat portion of the air bearing surface 29 ofthe slider.

As best seen in FIG. 7, use of a mask 40 having the above describedshape creates the crown shape because of the way the carbon travels fromthe source 42 to the slider 20. Using such a method, the majority of thecoating material travels in a straight line through the hole 44 and isdeposited on the slider 20. A small amount of the carbon or coatingmaterial, however, travels at an angle from the source 42 to the slider20. Some of this carbon passes through the hole 44, thus landing to theoutside of the area corresponding to the opening 44 in the mask 40. Inthis fashion, a very small amount of coating 36 is deposited at the ends26 and 28 of the slider 20, while the majority of the carbon isdeposited in the center of the slider 20, thus creating the crown shapedcoating 36 on the air bearing surface 29 of the slider 20.

While RF diode sputtering is the preferred process for depositing thecoating 36, any number of other methods which allow the placement of acontinuous protective coating with the desired thickness and tolerancesmay be used. Such methods may include, but are not limited to: ChemicalVapor Deposition; or DC diode, DC magnetron, RF magnetron, or ion-beamsputtering.

Once again, it is noted that it is preferable in many situations to coatthe air bearing surface 29 of the slider 20 with an adhesive materialbefore deposition of the coating 36. In the preferred embodiment of thepresent invention, it is desired that a layer of adhesive material 39,be deposited in a crown shape with a maximum depth of 2 to 4 nm upon theair bearing surface 29 of the slider 20, as illustrated in FIG. 6.

When utilizing an adhesion layer 39, the bottom 24 of the slider 20 isfirst cleaned, as described above. Next, the adhesion layer source iscleaned.

It is preferred that the adhesive material is placed utilizing a mask,as described above. It is possible, however for a uniform adhesion layer39 be deposited. Utilizing the above-identified equipment, andpreferably the rotating substrate table, the following parameters arepreferred to deposit the adhesion layer 39:

Process atmospheric gas: Argon;

Gas Pressure: 9 to 12 milliTorr;

Power: 400 to 600 Watts; and

Substrate voltage: -20 to -100 Volts.

After preparation of the adhesive coating 39, the coating 36 material isdeposited, as described above.

Although this invention has been described in terms of certain preferredembodiments, other embodiments that are apparent to those of ordinaryskill in the art are also within the scope of this invention.Accordingly, the scope of the invention is intended to be defined onlyby reference to the following claims.

We claim:
 1. A method of forming a protective coating upon the airbearing surface of a slider which is used in conjunction with arotatable magnetic disk, said air bearing surface having a length, afirst end and a second end, said method comprising:providing a sliderhaving an air bearing surface; providing a source of carbon coatingmaterial; locating a mask having a hole therein having a first dimensionshorter than said length of said air bearing surface between said sourceof carbon coating material and the air bearing surface of said slider,such that said mask is spaced from said slider; aligning said mask withsaid slider such that said first dimension is aligned with said lengthof said slider; and directing said carbon coating material from saidsource of carbon coating material towards said mask and slider, so thatsaid a portion of said carbon coating material is prevented fromcontacting said slider by said mask and another portion of said carboncoating material passes through said hole in said mask and is depositedon said slider forming a continuous coating such that said coating has athickness between said ends of said slider greater than a thickness ofsaid coating at at least one of said first end and said second end ofsaid slider, and said coating has a thickness of no more than 10 nm. 2.The method of claim 1, further comprising depositing a layer of adhesivematerial onto said air bearing surface before the depositing of saidcarbon coating material.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein saiddepositing of said layer of adhesive material comprises depositing saidlayer of adhesive material to a maximum thickness of about 2-4 nm. 4.The method of claim 3, wherein said providing said slider comprisesproviding a slider having a transducer element having a resistancecomponent of characteristic impedance, and depositing of said adhesivelayer comprises depositing an adhesive layer having a resistance higherthan said resistance component of characteristic impedance of saidtransducer element.
 5. The method of claim 3, wherein said depositing ofsaid layer of adhesive comprises:providing a source of adhesivematerial; locating a mask having a hole therein having a first dimensionshorter than said length of said air bearing surface between said sourceand the air bearing surface of said slider, such that said mask isspaced from said slider; aligning said mask with said slider such thatsaid first dimension is aligned with said length of said slider; anddirecting said adhesive material from said source of adhesive materialtowards said mask and slider, so that said a portion of said adhesivematerial is prevented from contacting said slider by said mask andanother portion of said adhesive material passes through said hole insaid mask and is deposited on said slider forming a continuous layersuch that said layer has a thickness between said ends of said slidergreater than a thickness of said layer at at least one of said first endand said second end of said slider, and said layer has a thickness of nomore than about 2 nm to 4 nm.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein saidresistance component of characteristic impedance of said transducerelement is in the range of 10⁴ to 10⁶ ohms.
 7. A method of forming aprotective coating upon the air bearing surface of a slider which isused in conjunction with a rotatable magnetic disk, said air bearingsurface having a length, a first end and a second end, said methodcomprising:providing a slider having an air bearing surface and atransducer element having a resistance component of characteristicimpedance; providing a source of carbon coating material; directing saidcoating material from said source of carbon coating material towardssaid slider, so that a portion of said carbon coating material isdeposited on said slider such that said portion has a thickness betweensaid ends of said slider of no more than 10 nm, which is greater than athickness of said portion at at least one of said first end and saidsecond end of said slider; and depositing a layer of adhesive materialonto said air bearing surface to a maximum thickness of about 2-4 nmsuch that said adhesive material has a resistance higher than saidresistance component of characteristic impedance of said transducerelement before the depositing of said coating material.
 8. The method ofclaim 7, wherein said resistance component of characteristic impedanceof said transducer element is in the range of 10⁴ to 10⁶ ohms.
 9. Themethod of claim 8, wherein said method of depositing a layer of adhesivematerial comprises directing said adhesive material from a source ofadhesive material towards said slider, so that a portion of saidadhesive material is deposited on said slider such that said portion hasa thickness between said ends of said slider of no more than about 2 nmto 4 nm, which is greater than a thickness of said portion at at leastone of said first end and said second end of said slider.